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Sago palm: toxicity, first aid and care
Sago palm (Cycas revoluta): severe for cats, severe for dogs, severe for small children. The toxic principle, the signs, what to do, and how to grow it.
Cats: SevereDogs: SevereChildren: SevereEmergency risk
Also sold as: King sago, cycad, Japanese sago palm.
This is a reference table, not a diagnosis and not veterinary or medical advice. It cannot tell you how much of a plant matters for a particular child or a particular animal — that depends on body weight, on the part eaten and on how long ago. If a person or an animal has eaten part of a plant, phone the poison information centre or a clinician; do not wait for symptoms, and do not make anyone vomit unless you are told to.
What is in it
Toxic principle: Cycasin and related azoxyglycosides — Alkaloids and other systemic poisons.
A cycad, not a palm, and one of the very few house plants that attacks the liver rather than the gut. Gut bacteria convert cycasin into a compound that kills liver cells outright. The whole plant is toxic and the seeds — the fat orange-brown nuts in the centre of a mature female plant — carry by far the most. Dogs are the usual patients because dogs chew woody things.
What it looks like when it goes wrong
Vomiting, often bloody, and diarrhoea within a few hours. Then a quiet interval, followed one to three days later by liver failure: jaundice, bruising and bleeding, black tarry stool, disorientation and collapse. Neurological signs can appear alongside.
What to do
An emergency at any quantity, including a single chewed seed. Go to a veterinary clinic immediately and take the plant tag or a photograph, because the plant is frequently sold simply as "palm". Veterinary poison services describe this as one of the highest-mortality plant exposures they handle even when treatment starts promptly, which is exactly why the visit is not optional.
| Country | Poison information centre | Number | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| Estonia | Mürgistusteabekeskus (Health Board) | 16662 | Round the clock; 112 for an emergency |
| Finland | Myrkytystietokeskus (HUS) | 0800 147 111 | Free, round the clock |
| Latvia | Saindēšanās un zāļu informācijas centrs | 67042473 | Round the clock |
| Sweden | Giftinformationscentralen | 010-456 67 00 | Non-urgent advice; 112 in an emergency |
| Norway | Giftinformasjonen | 22 59 13 00 | Round the clock |
| Denmark | Giftlinjen (Bispebjerg Hospital) | 82 12 12 12 | Round the clock |
Anywhere in the European Union, 112 reaches emergency services and can put you through. Lithuania's poison information bureau (Apsinuodijimų kontrolės ir informacijos biuras) publishes its own round-the-clock line; if you do not have it to hand, use 112. For an animal, your own veterinary clinic or its out-of-hours service is the first call — human poison centres do not advise on animals in every country.
How to grow it
| Condition | What it wants |
|---|---|
| Light | Bright light, tolerates several hours of direct sun |
| Water | Let the top half of the pot dry; it hates wet feet |
| Temperature | Indoors 16-24 °C; not remotely hardy here |
Slow to the point of appearing inert — one flush of new fronds a year is normal, and a plant may skip a year. It wants a gritty free-draining mix, a heavy pot, and no fertiliser to speak of. The commonest way to kill one is kindness with the watering can, which rots the caudex from the inside while the fronds still look fine.
What it gets confused with
Garden centres shelve it with the palms and it is often labelled only as "sago palm" or "cycad", so buyers do not connect it with the poisoning warnings that use the botanical name. Real palms — parlour palm, areca, kentia — are unrelated and are not on the toxic lists. If a household has a dog and this plant, the honest answer is usually to rehome the plant.
A plant that is not on the toxic lists
If you are deciding what to keep in a home with a cat, a dog or a small child, this one fills a similar role and is not flagged by the veterinary services.
Others that work the same way
Alkaloids and other systemic poisons — these behave alike, and what you would do about them is alike too.
Autumn crocus
Colchicine
Castor bean
Ricin (in the seed)
Deadly nightshade and bittersweet
Tropane alkaloids (atropine, hyoscyamine, scopolamine); solanine in Solanum
Monkshood
Aconitine alkaloids
True lily and daylily
Unidentified nephrotoxin (cats only)
Yew
Taxine alkaloids
Source: ASPCA Animal Poison Control — toxic and non-toxic plants · checked 2026-09-06
Care guidance is standard horticultural practice for a cool-temperate northern climate. Poison-centre numbers are listed on the hub page and are worth confirming against your own country's health service.
Frequently asked questions
Is sago palm toxic to cats?
The veterinary lists rate it "severe" for cats and "severe" for dogs. The toxic principle is cycasin and related azoxyglycosides. A cycad, not a palm, and one of the very few house plants that attacks the liver rather than the gut. Gut bacteria convert cycasin into a compound that kills liver cells outright.
What should I do if my dog eats sago palm?
An emergency at any quantity, including a single chewed seed. Go to a veterinary clinic immediately and take the plant tag or a photograph, because the plant is frequently sold simply as "palm".
Is sago palm dangerous for a small child?
The verdict for a child who chews or swallows part of it is "severe". Vomiting, often bloody, and diarrhoea within a few hours. Then a quiet interval, followed one to three days later by liver failure: jaundice, bruising and bleeding, black tarry stool, disorientation and collapse.
How do you care for sago palm?
Light: Bright light, tolerates several hours of direct sun. Water: Let the top half of the pot dry; it hates wet feet. Temperature: Indoors 16-24 °C; not remotely hardy here. Slow to the point of appearing inert — one flush of new fronds a year is normal, and a plant may skip a year.
What is sago palm confused with?
Garden centres shelve it with the palms and it is often labelled only as "sago palm" or "cycad", so buyers do not connect it with the poisoning warnings that use the botanical name. Real palms — parlour palm, areca, kentia — are unrelated and are not on the toxic lists.
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